SECO and Boeing Successfully Achieve Design Certification for the MQ-25A Deck Control Device

This marks a major milestone in SECO’s contribution to next-generation military aviation systems. The collaboration with Boeing represents a significant multi-decade contract for SECO.

Rockville, MD, SECO USA, Inc. (“SECO USA” or the “Company”) is pleased to announce the successful design certification of its project with Boeing, serving as a key supplier in the development and delivery of a deck handling system for the U.S. Navy’s MQ-25A Stingray carrier-based unmanned aerial refueling platform.

This milestone marks the full delivery and acceptance of the deck control device (DCD), which follows the earlier demonstration of hoist-aboard remote-control operations announced in October 2021.  Through this multi-decade engagement, SECO designed, developed, and integrated the rugged operator-held control grip, arm-mounted display unit, waist-worn processor unit, and military-grade radio, meeting stringent carrier deck environmental, human-factors, and electromagnetic requirements.

The key highlights of this engagement include:  

  • Close cooperation with Boeing and Navy integrators to translate concepts of operations into a deployable control system for carrier-based unmanned systems;
  • Ruggedization to meet naval aviation deck-handling demands, including exposure to deck motion, carrier based electromagnetic compatibility (EMC) and human-machine interface (HMI) ergonomics tailored for carrier crew use;
  • Agile hardware and software development, enabling fast, iterative turnarounds on human-factors refinements while maintaining military-grade reliability and safety critical redundancy;
  • Full system delivery, validation and acceptance by Boeing and Navy stakeholders, culminating in the final approval of the DCD package.

Dario Freddi, Managing Director of SECO USA, commented:

“We are extremely proud to have delivered this critical subsystem in partnership with Boeing, demonstrating SECO’s ability to operate at the highest levels of reliability, ruggedization and mission-critical performance within the military aerospace domain This program underscores our commitment to providing embedded hardware and software solutions that enable next-generation unmanned systems for national security missions.”

NAVAIR Public Release SPR-2026-0022. Distribution Statement A – “Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited” Approved 1/7/2026 by PAO (Katie Coughlan)